Pramipexole News

THURSDAY, Sept. 28, 2017 – Researchers say they've discovered a possible explanation for visual hallucinations in people with Parkinson's disease. The researchers conducted brain scans on 15 patients with visual hallucinations, 40 patients without visual hallucinations, and a control group of 15 people without Parkinson's disease. In all of the Parkinson's disease patients, numerous areas of the ...

THURSDAY, Sept. 28, 2017 – Regular cups of coffee will not ease tremors and movement problems caused by Parkinson's disease, despite prior evidence that caffeine might help, a new clinical trial reports. Earlier short-term results from the same trial had shown caffeine improved the motor function of a small group of Parkinson patients, researchers said. But long-term results from the trial now ...

THURSDAY, Aug. 17, 2017 – Parkinson's disease patients get as much benefit from seeing a neurologist via home video conference as from seeing a local doctor in person, a new study reports. The research included nearly 200 patients who received either care from their usual doctor or their usual care plus up to four video (virtual) visits with a neurologist they had not seen before. The virtual ...

FRIDAY, Aug. 11, 2017 – Singing? To benefit people with Parkinson's disease? It just may help, a researcher says. "We're not trying to make them better singers, but to help them strengthen the muscles that control swallowing and respiratory function," said Elizabeth Stegemoller, an assistant professor of kinesiology at Iowa State University. Stegemoller holds a weekly singing therapy class for ...

THURSDAY, July 13, 2017 – Typically, better-paying jobs and those that require higher education are thought more desirable, but a new study suggests white collar workers have a higher risk of death from two neurodegenerative diseases. The research found that richer, better-educated people with Parkinson's disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease), appear ...

THURSDAY, Dec. 22, 2016 – Almost any exercise is good medicine for someone with Parkinson's disease, a new study confirms. Although physical activity may seem impossible for some Parkinson's patients, the new research review reaffirms what many specialists already believe: that exercise can have a long-term impact, improving gait and reducing risk of falls, in particular. "I pretty much never ...

WEDNESDAY, June 24, 2015 – Parkinson's disease patients who begin regular exercise earlier have a much slower decline in quality of life than those who start exercising later, a new study finds. National Parkinson Foundation (NPF) researchers looked at information from nearly 3,000 patients. More than 1,300 reported doing little regular exercise before taking part in the study. Over two years, ...

TUESDAY, April 28, 2015 – Kirk Gibson, who played 17 seasons of Major League Baseball and is perhaps best known for a dramatic pinch-hit, ninth inning home run to win a World Series game in 1988, said Tuesday he has Parkinson's disease. Gibson, 57, a Michigan native who played 12 seasons with the Detroit Tigers, said in a statement that "I have faced many different obstacles in my life, and have ...

MONDAY, Oct. 20, 2014 – Drugs commonly used to treat Parkinson's disease may raise the risk of so-called impulse control disorders, according to a new review. These disorders include compulsive gambling, compulsive shopping and/or hypersexuality. That increased risk was seen in a fresh review of a decade's worth of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) records. "What we have here is a striking ...

ISSUE: FDA notified healthcare profesionals about a possible increased risk of heart failure with Mirapex (pramipexole). Results of recent studies suggest a potential risk of heart failure that needs further review of available data. Because of the study limitations, FDA is not able to determine whether Mirapex increases the risk of heart failure. FDA is continuing to work with the manufacturer ...

TUESDAY, March 29 – Parkinson's disease drugs called dopamine agonists appear to cause impulse control problems in almost one-quarter of patients, says a new study. Previous research has linked dopamine agonists, which include Mirapex (pramipexole) and Requip (ropinirole), to impulse control disorders, such as gambling addiction and hypersexuality, and to compulsive behaviors, such as binge ...

MONDAY, May 10 – Medicines used to treat Parkinson's disease may increase the risk of impulse control disorders, such as problem gambling, compulsive shopping and binge eating, researchers warn. In a new study that included 3,090 patients being treated for Parkinson's at 46 movement disorder centers in the United States and Canada, the researchers found that 13.6 percent of the patients had ...

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 13 – Reduced dosages of dopamine agonists, drugs routinely used to treat Parkinson's disease, can cause symptoms similar to those experienced by addicts in withdrawal, such as anxiety, panic attacks, pain, dizziness and drug cravings, researchers say. The symptoms of what the researchers have dubbed "dopamine agonist withdrawal syndrome" have been linked to a disruption in levels ...